Sesame StreetThe “Sunny Days” may not be so rosy if Elon Musk puts his proposal into action and cuts hundreds of millions of dollars in annual funding allocated to the networks PBS and NPR – home of Elmo and the gang as well as popular programs like All in all And Fresh air with Terry Gross & Tonya Mosley.

Musk is in the unique position of recommending defunding public media, a goal that Republicans, including a congressman from Pennsylvania, have been eager to achieve. After bringing millions of dollars in influence and surrogacy to campaign for President-elect Donald Trump in Pennsylvania, Trump named Musk to jointly head the planned Department of Government Efficiency with Vivek Ramaswamy. Given Musk’s status as the world’s richest man, his influence in Trump’s circle and government could pose a greater threat to public media than previous attempts by the Republican Party.

National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting Service are preparing for the impact of funding cuts. After the 2024 election, leaders of NPR’s largest member stations distributed a report saying, “It would be unwise to assume that events will unfold as they have in the past” when it comes to federal funding, The New York Times reported, as PBS reported the situation was brought to the attention of political consultants in early December. In certain states, station managers have begun lobbying legislators.

WHYY is the Philadelphia region’s PBS/NPR member station, serving 2.9 million households in the Philadelphia, Delaware and South Jersey region – one of the top 10 largest markets in the country as of March, according to the Pew Center for Arts and Heritage. Fresh airone of NPR’s most popular programs, is owned and produced by WHYY. It’s unclear what WHY potential cuts will impact or whether the station is preparing for any impact. New Jersey also has its own public media network – NJ PBS – consisting of various stations including WNJN.

In a statement to The Inquirer, Gary Bramnick, senior director of marketing communications at WHYY, emphasized the importance of public media for educational content, cultural programming and news, regardless of the consumer’s income or location.

“Public media supports diverse audiences, voices and perspectives and is an invaluable asset to our society. They provide a unique blend of services that enrich our lives, support an engaged citizenry and ultimately strengthen our democracy,” he said Friday. “Investing in public media is an investment in a better informed, more engaged and fairer society.”

A PBS spokesperson echoed Bramnick’s sentiments in a statement Friday, saying PBS is grateful for the bipartisan support in Congress.

“We’ve earned this support through decades of work in local communities: providing all Americans with content they trust; Curating a wide range of stories and programs that help citizens understand our past and shape our future; and helping children and families open up worlds of possibilities through educational programs,” the spokesperson said. “PBS stations also ensure emergency warnings reach everyone who needs to hear them.”

Representatives for NPR did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This is not the first time that public media has had to prepare for a backlash. Republicans have been calling for cuts in federal funding for public media for decades, with their biggest concern being perceived liberal bias, the Times reported. In 2020, Trump recommended cutting federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which distributes taxpayer money to NPR and other public media companies, to $0 by 2023.

And this year, U.S. Rep. Scott Perry (R., Pa.) and U.S. Sen. John Kennedy (R., La.) introduced the No Propaganda Act to do the same thing. A spokesman for Perry, who represents the Harrisburg area, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Musk’s proposal.

“CPB cannot continue to use your hard-earned tax dollars to advance a partisan and political agenda that runs counter to what is best for Americans,” Perry said in a statement in April.

Bramnick said the CPB “has played a critical role in ensuring a well-informed, diverse and democratic society.”

Trump’s recommendation four years ago proved unsuccessful and Perry’s bill has sat in a House subcommittee since April. And NPR and PBS stations could use several factors to their advantage, including supporting emergency alert systems. The CPB may also be funded two years in advance making it harder for the GOP to take action in Congress.

But Musk’s political influence — which recently led lawmakers to scrap and rewrite a bipartisan spending deal as they negotiated a government shutdown — could be a potential ray of hope for Republicans and pose new challenges for the public media.

The billionaire has never been shy about expressing his disdain for various media sources, often baselessly claiming that his social media platform X is a more trustworthy source of news than accredited news outlets. On Sunday he said: “Legacy media must die.”

During the 2024 election, Musk often used X to spread misinformation about the integrity of Pennsylvania’s election as well as his pro-Trump rhetoric. Combined with his unwavering loyalty to the president-elect and the creation of the America PAC and the town halls and petitions he sponsored in Pennsylvania, some Republicans say Musk’s influence helped Trump secure victory in the battleground state.

Now Musk has been rewarded with more authority and access. And it could help Republicans move closer to a long-term goal.